Have No Fear
“I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him! Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies And not one of them is forgotten before God. Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.” – Luke 12:4-7
Many, people think of God as a far-away-God. He is busy with running the universe, but he is not concerned with a little worm like me. How wrong! God knows you intimately. He knows what makes you tick. He knows your weaknesses, and he knows your strengths. He knows your past. as he knows your future. In fact every hair on your head is numbered. Not one falls out without his knowledge. Just as he knows every sparrow in the sky, and not one falls without his knowledge
So God not only knows the finest details of your life, but he cares about them. Nothing happens apart from his knowledge and will. There are trying times in life through which faith is tested and burnished like fine gold. Yes, he promises that all things- even evil things like COVID-19 -must work for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose. But at all times we must keep our ultimate priority in mind. Do not fear anything that can kill the body but cannot harm the soul. Rather, fear him who can cast both .body and soul into hell. Yet the one with that very power is your gracious God and Lord. He who has that power loved you so much that he gave his only son to die on a cross for you. Jesus,. who died for you, is the friend of sinners. He is risen from the dead now and he lives forever. He stands ready at all times to help sinners. He helps not just those who are in trouble through no fault of their own, but also those who by their own choices have made a mess our of their lives. Jesus forgives, cleanses, and washes away old sins and mistakes and sets you up to live a new life in his name.
So don’t be afraid of God. He knows you intimately, and he still loves you. He stands ready to help you, when you are ready to turn from your sin to him in faith. “God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”-Romans 8:31-32
-Pastor Anderson